Tampon applicators are formed of both paperboard and plastic and they typically have a barrel and plunger used for expelling a tampon through an insertion end of the barrel into a vaginal cavity by applying a pressure to a finger engaging end of the plunger. Among the problems that have been noted is the fact that a portion, or all, of the applicator is out of the direct line of sight of a user during tampon insertion which can impair proper and comfortable delivery of the tampon. As a result, it is important that the tampon applicator incorporate suitable features making it possible to use the applicator for delivery of the tampon without any hindrance to gripping the barrel or controlling the plunger during tampon insertion.
In an effort to achieve these results, many different tampon applicators have been proposed having a wide variety of features. However, despite these efforts, there are still shortcomings which remain to be addressed. Generally, these shortcomings relate to the inability of known tampon applicators to fully and satisfactorily address the overall comfort of the user.
Among the shortcomings in existing tampon applicators is providing a secure, comfortable grip at the gripping end of the barrel. It is also recognized that the finger engaging ends of the plungers in existing tampon applicators often are found to be less than fully adequate for applying right amount of pressure to the plunger in a manner that ensures the proper and comfortable delivery of the tampon. Further, the barrel and plunger of existing tampon applicators have not always provided for stabilized relative sliding movement.
In addition, the insertion end of the barrel on many existing tampon applicators is formed to have a plurality of flexible petals defined by slits where the petals can open during tampon insertion and then close for withdrawal of the barrel. Thus, when pressure is applied to the finger engaging end of a plunger, the plunger engages the tampon and moves it forward in the barrel until the tampon engages the flexible petals, forcing them to open to thereby enable the tampon to be inserted into the vaginal cavity. However, if too much pressure is applied to the plunger by the user, it is possible for the plunger to be inserted too far into the barrel to the point that it can potentially prevent the flexible petals from fully closing after tampon insertion.
When the flexible petals are prevented from fully closing, it is possible for the petals to pinch the delicate tissue within the vaginal cavity, which can be very painful. Once this has occurred to a user of such tampon applicators, future use necessarily will be fraught with uncertainty and trepidation. Since the flexible petal design is otherwise highly functional, the possibility of over insertion of the plunger during insertion of the tampon is a serious detriment.
It would be desirable to have a tampon applicator having a secure, comfortable grip at the gripping end of the barrel, a plunger having a finger engaging end which is suitably configured for applying pressure in a manner that ensures the proper and comfortable delivery of a tampon from the barrel, and a construction providing for stabilized sliding movement of the plunger relative to the barrel while at the same time preventing over insertion of the plunger.